Spirit: A New Beginning
by erziegler00
Summary: Athena, the daughter of Spirit and Rain, is questioning her future place as leader of the Cimarron herd. But then she meets Barak, a white stallion, who is the future leader of an enemy herd. After much time together, they realize that the rivalry between their herds will separate them forever. Can Athena and Barak unite their families and bring peace to the American West?
1. Characters

The Cimarron Herd

Spirit - powerful dun stallion with chocolate points, mane, and tail; leader of the herd

Rain - brown overo Paint horse with a cream mane and tail; Spirit's mate

Athena - pretty dun tobiano pinto mare with chocolate points and a chocolate and cream mane and tail; Spirit and Rain's daughter

Esperanza - aged palomino mare with a white blaze, two hind stockings and two front socks; Spirit's mother

The Sharir Herd

Raven - large, jet black mare with a left hind sock and a lightning bolt-shaped stripe; leader of the herd

Barak - pure white stallion; Raven's adoptive son

Eclipse - blue roan mare with a white star and two hind socks; Storm and Raven's daughter

Flame - bright red mare with a white stripe and a flowing mane and tail

Other Horses

Storm - strong dapple gray stallion; Raven's mate

Comanche - bay colt with a wide white blaze, two hind socks, and black mane and tail; Spirit and Rain's son


	2. Prologue

Spirit and Rain watched in horror, as their son was lying awkwardly at the bottom of the cliff, taking his final breaths. They raced to the young colt and knelt down beside him, tears streaming down their faces.

"Comanche", Rain sobbed, "It's going to be alright, we're here."

"What happened?" Spirit said tearfully, "Who did this?"

Comanche shook his head weakly, "Can't say," he replied sadly. He looked at his parents, "I'm sorry", he croaked, "I'm sorry I can't be the leader you wanted me to be."

Spirit, trying to hold back sobs, replied to his dying son, "Now, son, don't you say that! You will make a fine leader one day, just you wait.

Comanche sadly shook his head, then broke into a coughing fit. It was a few seconds later that he took his last breath. Spirit and Rain wept until they couldn't weep anymore.

Spirit and Rain got back to the herd, carrying Comanche on their backs. Everyone stared in horror, Spirit's mother, Esperanza, galloped to them.

"Spirit!" She looked at her grief-stricken son, "What happened?"

"He fell over the cliff", Spirit said solemnly. Rain started sobbing again.

Spirit put on a brave face and announced to the herd, "In honor of my son, we will sit in vigil tonight and have the burial ceremony tomorrow at dawn." Spirit and Rain carefully laid Comanche down and walked off into the distance with Esperanza. When they were far enough away from the herd, they began to talk.

"Spirit", Esperanza spoke gently to her son, "Comanche didn't fall over the cliff by accident, did he?"

Spirit didn't answer at first, but breathed in deeply, "No, Mother, this was intentional", he hung his head, "And I'm sure we all know who did it."

Rain and Esperanza stared at him in disbelief, "No!" Rain shouted, "Spirit, it's not true!"

"It's true", Spirit looked at his mate, " I saw her do it."

"No", Rain cried, "No, I don't believe it!" She burst into tears.

Esperanza hung her head, "I knew she'd do something like this one day, but I didn't want to believe it."

Rain was crying hysterically, Spirit looked at her, "Hey, hey, Rain, look at me", she looked up, "We all knew she would do something like this one day, I couldn't believe she would, but she did. You know what has to be done, we have to protect our future foal from her!" Spirit gestured to Rain's pregnant belly. She looked at him, closed her eyes, and nodded. "All right", Spirit said gently, "Come here", they rubbed each other's noses in comfort, then walked back to the herd to grieve for their son.

Let me know what you think so far!


	3. Chapter 1

It was the crack of dawn. Everyone was asleep except a dun paint filly. She ran excitedly to the ledge that looked over all of the Cimarron lands.

"Wow!" she breathed. The young foal pranced down from the ledge and galloped to her sleeping parents.

"Daddy, Daddy! C'mon get up!" she urged excitedly.

A sleepy Spirit opened one eye to look at his daughter, "Athena, it's barely dawn," he said groggily, "Try and get a little more sleep."

Athena scowled at her father, "You promised," she gave him a cross look, which made Spirit chuckle.

"Ok, ok I'm up," he gave a big yawn and walked with his daughter.

Spirit and Athena we're standing over a ledge in the canyon, looking over the Cimarron lands, with the eagle flying overhead.

" Look Athena," Spirit said to his daughter, "Everywhere the eagle flies is our land, and as future leader of the Cimarron herd, it will be your responsibility to protect and rule over our home."

"Really?" Athena replied in awe, "Wow." Then she noticed a part of land that the eagle avoided flying over. It was dead and dilapidated. "What about that bare place there?"

"Those are the Sharir lands. They're beyond our borders", Spirit replied, "You must never go there, Athena. There are dangers there that no one can describe."

Athena looked skeptically at the forbidden place, then nodded. Spirit smiled and the continued the tour.

Spirit and Athena returned to the herd. Rain was waiting for them with Esperanza. They trotted towards the two mares, who were eager to know how the tour went.

Rain nickered to her daughter, "Athena, how did it go?"

Athena replied excitedly, "It was so cool, Mom! The Cimarron lands are so big. I can't believe that I'm going to become leader of all of it!"

Esperanza chuckled, "You still have a long way to go, Athena. Enjoy your youth. Try not to grow up to fast."

"Yes, Grandma," Athena said respectfully. Then she looked at her, "Grandma, why are the Sharir lands forbidden? What's out there?"

Esperanza gave her a gentle, but serious look, "Those lands are nothing but darkness. There's not a drop of good left there. The horses there are filled with an inescapable evil. They have done things that are unexplainable."

Athena gave her a curious look, "Like what?"

"Never mind," Spirit cut in, "Just run along now, play with your friends."

"Daaad," Athena complained, but touched noses with her parents and grandmother, and galloped over to the other foals.

 **RR**


	4. Chapter 2

Spirit and Rain were walking along the borders of the Cimarron lands. They were almost finished with the morning patrol, when they came across the border that separated the Cimarron and the Sharir lands. They sniffed the air and around the border to check if the Sharir horses had trespassed on their territory.

"They've been crossing the border," Spirit frowned. It was visible that the grass had been trampled on the outside of the border, and it smelled of Sharir horses.

"This is the third time this month," Rain stated.

"Don't worry," Spirit smiled at her, "We'll take the herd down to the border later today and have a discussion with them." Rain nodded and they made their way back home.

Athena was pacing around in boredom. There was nothing to do. She and her friends had already played their games ten times over when they all got bored and went to do their own thing. How badly she wanted to go out on her own and explore! She was pawing and kicking at a rock, when she got the courage to ask her grandmother one last time, "Can I go now, Grandma?"

Esperanza eyed her granddaughter, "Athena, wait until your parents get back and you can ask them if it's okay."

Athena grumbled and went back to pawing at the rock.

Esperanza snorted a chuckle, "Have patience, child. Morning patrols don't last forever."

Athena looked away and rolled her eyes. She had been patient all morning! How could she stand to be patient any longer? Why did morning patrols have to take so long? Why can't she just-"

"We're back!"

The sound of her father's neigh interrupted her thoughts and she sprinted towards them. Spirit was making an announcement to the herd, but she can hardly stand to wait any longer. She waited impatiently for him to finish what he had to say.

"The Sharir herd had been repeatedly crossing our borders. We will all go down later today discuss with them, civilly, about the laws regarding borders."

"Dad!" Athena spoke right when Spirit was finished, almost interrupting him.

Spirit looked in her direction, "Yes, honey?"

"Can I go explore the Cimarron lands on my own?" Athena asked eagerly.

Spirit gave a skeptical and somewhat nervous look. Before he answered, he turned to Rain, who gave him a reassuring look.

"She'll be fine, dear. Let her go," Rain nodded.

Spirit took a deep breath and answered her, "Alright, just don't go to far, and stay within the Cimarron lands."

Athena gave an excited squeal and quickly touched noses with her parents, "Thank you!" She said briskly and ran off into the distance.

Spirit and Rain watched her go. Spirit was still worried. He looked at Rain.

"Are you sure it's alright to let her go? I mean, the Sharir herd is threatening our borders. What if something happens?"

Rain gave him a loving look and rubbed his cheek, "Spirit, she'll be fine. She's strong and brace and knows how to handle herself," Rain turned her head to gaze at her mate, "Just like her father."

Spirit looked at her and chuckled, then gazed off into the distance to watch Athena go. There was a few moments of silence before Rain broke it.

"Our daughter's growing up," she said.

Spirit looked over at Athena galloping into the distance. He suddenly noticed that she looked more mature and independent, and that she was growing into a beautiful, young mare. Maybe he didn't need to worry about her so much. Giving a deep breath, Spirit and Rain proudly watched their daughter as she went off on her own.

 **Sorry this chapter is kinda boring, but, you know, there's a boring chapter in every story! Also, please let me know if the story is getting too Lion King 2ish, because I really don't want to totally rip the story off of Lion King. Please enjoy the story .**

 **RR**


	5. Chapter 3

Athena galloped towards the mountains at full speed. This is her first time ever out on her own, and she was loving every minute of it! She slowed down and stopped at the stream for a quick drink, lowering her head to sip the fresh water.

She finished and stared at her reflection. She was almost nearing her second year, which meant that she must start learning how to be the Cimarron heard's next leader. Athena's eyes gleamed excitedly. She has been waiting to start her training as the next leader her whole life! She already learned all of the medicine stuff. Horses who are leaders of their herd also need to learn how to care for horses when they get sick or injured. Now that she was passed all that boring stuff, she could finally learn how to defend the herd against predators, and lead them in battles against enemy horses. Chills vibrated through the painted filly's body. She wondered if she would ever find a mate that would be lead stallion. They would rule over the heard together, and have their own foals that would grow up to be the leaders after them! Maybe they could--

"AAAAHHHHHH!"

An ear-piercing scream interrupted Athena's daydreams. It sounded like another horse, but she didn't recognize the voice. She listened closer.

"SOMEBODY, HELP ME!!"

Athena raised her head. That horse is clearly in danger. Rearing up, she raced towards the pleading cry, in hopes that she wasn't too late.

Athena sprinted across the meadow in the direction of the panicked horse's whinny. She stopped and pricked her ears, listening again to where it might be coming from.

"HELP ME, SOMEBODY! PLEASE!!"

It definitely sounded closer. She turned her head and listened again.

(YOWLS) "EEEEEEEEEEEKKK!"

Athena's eyes widened. That sounded like a mountain lion. She sniffed the air. Smelled like one too. She could now see that it was coming from the gorge.

"I'M COMING!" She galloped towards the huge chasm in the ground.

Athena finally arrived at the scene. Looking down, she could see a huge mountain lion perched on a small rock. It was cornering a young, white colt, who was just about her age. The colt was pawing at the ground and kicking at the lion, but it was plain to see that he couldn't fight it alone. She stared at them in horror. Should she get the herd? No! It would be too late by the time they got there. She had to take matters into her own hooves.

"I'm here!" Athena whinnied to him.

"Oh, thank goodness!" the colt neighed in reply, "Please hurry! I can't hold him off much longer!"

Athena looked around frantically, trying to come up with a plan. Her eyes finally settled on a pile of boulders, lying right above the horse and the lion. She eyed them skeptically. Yes! it might work!

"Stay there!" She called down to the colt, " I have an idea."

Athena ran to the pile of large rocks. She kicked them, loosening them from the ground. Once she made a good sized pile, she pushed the rocks with all her might. Making them tumble down the cliff.

"RUN!" She yelled.

The white colt looked in her direction. A rock slide was coming! Thinking fast, he jumped onto a small bluff in the cliff. He looked at the lion. He could make it. Gathering up his strength and courage, he made a giant leap right over the mountain lion. Surprised, the lion eyed the colt, but it wasn't going to let him get away. Crouching down, he leaped up and clawed the white horse in mid air. The colt squealed in pain, but landed and ran as fast as he could, while the boulders crushed the lion behind him. Panting, he skidded to a halt, turning around to look at the boulder pile behind him. He neighed in triumph when he saw that the mountain lion was no more.

Athena reared and bucked in the air. "YEAH!" She squealed excitedly. She gazed at the colt, "Come on up!" She whinnied to him. The colt tossed his head, galloped in her direction, and bounded up the pile. He leaped up on the higher ground and turned to meet the filly, who just saved his life.

"Gee, thanks a lot," He said to Athena, "I would have been dead meat if you didn't show up."

Athena blushed a little, "My pleasure," she replied.

The colt whinnied amusingly, "What's your name?" he asked her.

"I'm Athena", she replied, "Yours?"

"My name's Barak," he introduced.

"Nice to meet you", Athena nickered. Then, she noticed four red lines on the colt's flank, where the lion scratched him. It was oozing blood, and looked painful. "You OK?" She gestured to the slices on his flank.

Barak peered at his side, "Oh, yeah. It's not a big deal," he said, "It'll heal up eventually."

"Nonsense," Athena snorted, "Wounds like that will get infected if left untreated. Hold on, I'll be right back."

Athena trotted to a nearby brook. She ripped some moss off of a log, and soaked it in the brook. Spotting some small, white flowers, she put down the moss and uprooted them with her teeth. She soaked them in the brook as well, and stomped on them until they turned into a pulp. Gathering her supplies, she trotted back to the wounded colt, who was tearing up mouthfuls of grass, waiting patiently.

"Hold still and relax," Athena said to Barak, pressing the wet moss on the scratches.

He raised his head and looked at her, confused, "What are you doing?"

"Stopping the bleeding", Athena replied, "And putting yarrow on the wounds, so they won't get infected."

Barak didn't know if he should trust her. Should he run away? No! She saved his life, the least he could do is let her tend to his wounds. So, he relaxed and let her do her thing.

"Done," Athena said suddenly, "Leave the yarrow on the wounds for at least a week, and then you'll be as good as new. You'll probably have scars though"

"Thanks", Barak said, amazed, "How do you know all this stuff?"

"My father is leader of my herd," she replied, "I'm training to become the next leader, and I have to learn this medical stuff."

To Athena's surprise, Barak suddenly stepped back, wide eyed. He almost looked afraid.

"What's wrong?" She asked anxiously.

"Y-your not a Cimarron horse, are you?" he questioned nervously.

"Yes", Athena answered, confused.

"And Spirit's not your father, is he?"

"Yes"

Barak's expression transformed from nervousness to pure panic. He quickly shooed Athena away.

"You need to get out of here, NOW!" he urged, "You shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be here! We're not safe being seen together. Go, now, before they see you!"

Athena was confused and a little offended. "Why? What's so dangerous? Who are you talking about?

Barak kept shoving her, "Don't ask questions, just GO!"

"But I--AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Athena was interrupted by a deafening thunder of hooves.

A strange herd of horses galloped toward them. They stopped in right in front of them, pawing at the ground and snorting, angrily. Their leader, a huge, jet black mare with a left hind sock, reared up and threateningly neighed. Athena took a good look at the strange mare, and saw that she had a white stripe down her face, which looked exactly like a lightning bolt.

Suddenly, Spirit and the Cimarron herd arrived at the scene. Spirit, too, reared up and neighed at the other herd's leader. Both groups of horses were snorting and pawing at the ground, infuriatingly. It looked as if they were about to kill each other.

"Too late," Athena heard Barak whisper in her ear. She shuddered as she realized where they were. She had trespassed on the Sharir herd's territory.

 **Well Here it is! Its pretty long, but I am particularly proud of this chapter. Hope you enjoy!**

 **RR**


	6. Anouncement!

I have created some art of the characters for this story. Unfortunately, I can't figure out how to post it on , but it's on Wattpad. If you want to see it, my Wattpad profile is Emily Ziegler. Thanks and enjoy the rest of the story!


	7. Chapter 4

The two horses were death staring each other. There was awkward silence for a few moments, when Spirit spoke in a menacing tone.

"Raven."

"Spirit," the mare replied in an equally menacing tone.

There was another brief moment of silence, when Spirit suddenly spat furiously.

"Raven, what is your colt doing crossing the border? You know full well of the border markers, he should also be aware!"

"He was merely looking for food!" Raven snorted, "Ever since you exiled us to these lands, we've been scraping and scavenging for the most pitiful tuft of grass! Let me ask you this, Spirit: What is your filly doing with my son?!"

Spirit glared at Athena, but then he turned back to Raven.

"She just saved your son's life! You should be thanking her!"

Raven scoffed, and roughly nudged Barak away from Athena, pushing him to their side of the border.

"No matter", the large mare said coolly, "These lands shouldn't belong to you anyways, they belong to me." She then looked at Barak and turned to a fuming Spirit.

"You haven't met Barak, have you?" Raven questioned, "He's heir to the Sharir territory, and soon to the Cimarron lands. Once he defeats you, Spirit, this land and your herd will belong to the Sharir horses. There will no longer be any borders, separate territories, or rules that are not enforced by us. The Sharir herd will rule all!"

With this statement, Spirit snapped. He reared up, almost landing on the other side of the border.

"I banished you from the Cimarron lands, and it will stay that way!" Spirit neighed angrily, "The Sharir herd will never be a part of the Cimarron herd, and you will never have our land, or my family! Now get out! We're finished here!" With that, he nudged Athena back on the Cimarron side and began to walk away, but were stopped by Raven's cunning whinny.

"Oh no, Spirit," Raven eyed Athena and let out an evil chuckle, "We're just getting started."

Spirit and Raven exchanged one last death glare, and both herds turned and retreated back into their own territories.

The Cimarron herd was walking back home, when Spirit stopped. Rain looked back at him.

"Spirit?" Rain gave him a puzzled look.

"Go on ahead, and take the herd home," Spirit said to her, "I'm going to have a little talk with our daughter."

Athena suddenly stopped in her tracks, and winced. Oh, she was in for it. Nothing could save her now.

Rain nodded slightly, and kept walking with the rest of the herd.

Athena looked towards her father, who was standing and looking off into the distance. Head down, she cautiously walked towards him.

There was silence for what seemed like forever, but Athena developed enough courage to speak up.

"Dad, I-"

"Athena, what were you thinking?" Spirit cut her off with a stern, but gentle voice, "You know that the Sharir lands are forbidden. You could have gotten yourself killed!"

"Dad," Athena said quietly, "I'm sorry. I just heard Barak call for help, and I didn't pay attention to where I was going. I'll be more careful, I promise!"

Spirit looked at her, then smiled, "Athena, you are brave, smart, and caring. I'm proud of you for rescuing that colt by yourself. It shows your good heart, which is why I believe that you will be a fine leader someday."

"Really?" Athena couldn't believe her ears. Perhaps this day wouldn't be her last after all.

"Yes," Spirit grinned and went on, "But the Sharir herd is very dangerous. They're capable of indescribably awful things, which is why we stay away from them."

Athena thought that she could hear pain in her father's voice, but she decided to not ask about it. Instead, she told him that she understood, and promised never to go on the Sharir territory again.

Spirit smiled to his daughter and rubbed noses with her, "I love you, Athena."

"I love you too, Dad," Athena nuzzled his mane.

They stepped away from each other after a while.

"Let's go home," Spirit said.

Athena smiled and nodded. They then turned and walked back together to the Cimarron herd.

 **Hey guys! Sorry it's been so long. I promise I haven't forgotten. I actually have super awesome plans for this story, and I'm really excited for you guys to find out what I have in mind. So, your introduced to the Sharir herd in this chapter. You'll get to see a lot more of them. Also, if you guys haven't seen the movie where this story-line is based off of, its called The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride. Go watch it. It's super good. Bye for now! :)**

 **RR**


	8. Chapter 5

It was almost sundown. However, the sky is always red in the Sharir lands. Raven was about to return. The other horses ran on ahead to see if they could find any dinner for that night. They returned to their home with two, small bundles of dried grass. Everyone was fighting over who would get to them first, then they were interrupted by a loud whinny.

A blue roan filly with a white star and two hind socks stood on top of a small bluff, silencing the herd.

"Enough!" She said in a loud voice, "You all know that Mother gets the first helping of food! Stop acting like savages and wait until she gets back."

The horses started complaining.

"Oh give us a break, Eclipse!" They said, rolling their eyes, "Weren't you the one who was suppose to stay with Barak on the search for food, and then you lost him?"

They all started laughing, but Eclipse didn't find it a bit funny. She snorted angrily and stamped the ground.

"Mother left me in charge until she returned!"

They were still laughing, but then a bright red mare with a white strip down her face, a bit older than Eclipse, stepped up onto the ledge. She shook her head, which made her flowing mane look like fire.

"All of you, cut it out!" She neighed over the horses' taunting laughter, "I'll bet Raven wouldn't like it one bit if she found out that all of you were teasing her daughter."

Immediately, they stopped and huffed loudly.

"Oh, fine!"

"That's what I thought," the red mare smiled cunningly, "Now, get lost!"

The horses dispersed, mumbling under their breaths in frustration. When they were out of sight, Eclipse spoke up.

"Thanks, Flame," She said.

"No problem," Flame replied, tossing her fiery mane.

They both jumped down from the ledge and walked into a small, nearby cave, where they stood and talked.

"I don't understand why they don't listen to me," Eclipse snorted in frustration, "I'm the daughter of their leader, and they listen to you just fine!"

"I think it's because you're still a filly," Flame said.

"I'm almost an adult," Eclipse retorted, "I'm half way through my third year!"

"I'm barely an adult," Flame chuckled, "I just turned four last week!"

"And, yet, they do what you say," said Eclipse.

"I'm not even in the leader's family!" Flame went on, "They need to get a clue."

They both whinnied in laughter, then changed the subject.

"Oh man, I'm going to be in so much trouble when my mother gets back," Eclipse whined, "I can't believe I lost Barak on the search. She's going to have my head!"

"Hey, chill out!" Flame said, "She wouldn't kill her own daughter."

"I guess you're right," Eclipse relaxed. She saw Flame blush, under her already red face, at the mention of Barak.

"You like my brother, don't you," Eclipse cocked an eyebrow at her friend.

Flame blushed harder, but what's the point of lying now?

"A little," She said quietly.

Eclipse squealed in delight, "Ooohhh, you little lovebird!"

"Stop!" Flame giggled, embarrassed, "Is that weird? Do you think he's too young?"

"Oh no," Eclipse snorted, "He just turned three. You're not that much older."

"Yeah," Flame said, "Please, don't tell him!"

"Promise," Eclipse smiled, but then she scowled, which Flame noticed.

"What's wrong?" She asked her friend.

"I don't know," Eclipse sighed, "This might sound stupid, but sometimes I don't understand what Mother saw in Barak that would make him worthy of avenging Father. Sometimes, she makes me feel worthless compared to him. I mean, I love my brother, but sometimes I get jealous."

Flame nuzzled Eclipse compassionately, "It's OK, I get it."

Eclipse smiled, but then winced.

"Oh, but I know that she'll be mad nonetheless," Eclipse said.

"Well, you're about to find out," Flame signaled behind her.

Eclipse turned her head. Raven was coming back, with Barak trailing behind her. Barak had his head hanging guiltily, and she certainly didn't look happy.

Eclipse looked back to Flame, who nodded and wished her luck. Eclipse gulped, and walked towards the black mare.

Raven saw her daughter and eyed her angrily. When Eclipse approached, she started to bare her teeth.

"You were suppose to stay with him!" Raven neighed infuriatingly in Eclipse's face.

Eclipse winced and looked away.

"I-It's not her fault," Barak stammered, "I was the one who ran off!"

But it didn't calm Raven down. She turned to Barak and put herself right in front of him.

"What did you think you were doing with that filly?!" She started walking, making Barak back up.

"Nothing," he replied fearfully.

"Who banished us here?!"

"Spirit."

"Who killed Storm?!"

"Spirit."

"What have I told you about THEM?!" At this point, Raven showed no mercy.

"I-I'm sorry Mother," Barak said in a small voice, "Sh-She didn't seem that bad. I-I thought that we could be-"

"FRIENDS?!" Raven cut her son off, "You thought that you could befriend his daughter, and then Spirit would take you under his wing?! What and idea!"

Then, Raven stopped and gasped.

"What an idea!" She smiled proudly at her son, "You brilliant lad! You have the same mind as your mother. Come, it's time for bed."

Raven led her son into her cave, but she turned to Eclipse and glared.

"I'll deal with you later." Raven said in a poisonous tone.

Eclipse gulped.

Raven and Barak entered the cave, and Barak lied down on a bed of dried grass.

"Goodnight," Barak said shyly as they touched noses.

"Goodnight, my child," Raven replied, "Tomorrow your training intensifies."

Raven walked out of the cave to find Eclipse standing a few feet away. Raven snorted and trotted towards her, then galloped at full speed.

Eclipse barely know what hit her as she landed on the hard, dry ground. A few seconds later, she was hit with multiple kicks. She could hear her mother's furious voice.

"You worthless piece of fox dung!" Raven spat, "Lazy, good-for-nothing nag!"

Eclipse just suffered through her beating. There was no point in fighting back, she would just lose. The black mare continued with numerous bites and more kicking, throwing out more insults with every blow. It seemed to last forever, but Raven finally stopped and walked away, leaving her daughter lying on the ground, helpless.

 **Hey! So this chapter is really long, and kind of boring. I thought about combining this chapter and the next one, but I figured it would make it too long. Anyway, hope you like it. :)**

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	9. Chapter 6

Eclipse laid there for the rest of the night. She was half-conscious when she thought that she heard the sound of hooves trotting up to her, but she was too weak to fully open her eyes.

"It's alright, Eclipse. We're here," a familiar voice said.

Before she knew it, Eclipse felt herself drag across the ground. She sighed and slipped back into unconsciousness.

 ** _10 minutes earlier_ :**

Barak awoke from a restless sleep. He looked outside from his bed, and saw that it was barely the crack of dawn.

"It's early enough," Barak thought to himself, "She won't know."

He yawned, got up, and went outside. There, a few horse-lengths away, laid his sister. Beat-up and unconscious. Barak sighed.

"Not again," He internally wept for Eclipse. She had to go through this almost every day.

After giving his sister a touch with his nose, he turned and trotted towards Flame's cave.

 ** _Present time_ :**

Eclipse woke up to the feel of someone nudging her. She so badly wanted to sleep more, but she heard a voice calling her name.

"C'mon, Eclipse. You have to wake up."

Eclipse opened her eyes to find Barak and Flame staring down at her. She looked around, and saw that they were in the familiar place that they always go to after she received a beating.

"How are you feeling?" asked Flame.

"Lousy," Eclipse moaned.

"Hold still," Barak commanded her sister.

Eclipse lifted her head and looked over her shoulder. Barak was rubbing her wounds with moss and putting this green pulp on them.

"What are you doing?" She questioned him skeptically.

"Cleaning you up and putting yarrow on your wounds, so they don't get infected," Barak replied.

Confused, Eclipse looked at Flame, who shrugged her shoulders. She the turned to Barak, who wasn't looking up from his work. Eclipse cleared her throat to get her brother's attention. Barak looked up.

"How do you know this?" Eclipse demanded, "You've never done this in the past."

"Athena showed me," Barak said matter-of-factly.

Eclipse and Flame both raised their eyebrows.

"You mean that Cimarron filly that you were with yesterday?" Flame spoke up.

"Yep, she fixed me up after that encounter with the mountain lion." He gestured to his side, where Eclipse and Flame looked to see where the lion scratched him. It was healing up nicely and there were traces of yarrow pulp still left on it.

"Good for her," Flame scowled and held back a snort.

Barak turned back to his work, with the two female horses watching intently.

"Done," Barak suddenly said, "Leave the pulp on for about a week."

Flame and Eclipse noticed that there was pain in his voice. Flame was the one to speak up.

"Barak, is something wrong?" the fiery mare asked.

Barak winced and turned away.

"It's nothing," he choked, "I just hate seeing my sister like this almost every day. It makes me sick! How could Mother treat her own foal like that?! She never does that to me, and I'm not even her biological son! It makes no sense!"

Barak wept. His sister and Flame both leaned down to nuzzle him comfortingly.

"It's ok," Eclipse said, "I'm pretty much used to it by now."

"That doesn't make it right!" Barak cried.

"True," Eclipse replied, "But every horse here has to pull their own weight, no matter how cruel it may be. Hey, don't you have to go to training?"

Barak looked up. It was already sunrise.

"Oh gosh!" Barak exclaimed, "I'm late! I have to hurry, or else Mother will make me run laps for a week straight!"

"It's ok," Eclipse nodded, "Go. I'll be fine."

Barak touched noses with his sister, nodded to Flame, and turned to run back.

"Bye, guys!" His voice trailed off.

Eclipse and Flame watched as he galloped out of sight, the Flame let out a sigh.

"Oh, I hope Raven goes easy on him today," she said in a worried tone, "He looked really tired."

Eclipse chuckled.

"Don't worry," she teased, "He'll still be alive for you."

Flame glared at the blue roan, who was holding back laughter.

"Shut up," she said embarrassed, "I know that!"

Eclipse whinnied in laughter, while Flame stood there glaring at her.

Eventually, Eclipse calmed down and rolled off of her side.

"C'mon," she said, "We have to get back."

The red mare nodded, still scowling. Eclipse struggled to stand up, so Flame cut in.

"Let me help you," she said.

"Thanks," Eclipse replied gratefully.

The two friends slowly left their hospital place, with Flame helping Eclipse along the way.

 **Whats up? Wow, I'm on a roll! Three chapters published in one day! And I already have a picture of Barak done! I'll publish that after I publish this chapter. I should pay more attention in school. Lol! Ok, so basically, Barak, Eclipse, and Flame are kind of like the "good guys" of the Sharir herd, but everyone else is evil and are totally loyal to Raven. Just wanted to touch base with that in case you were thinking that the Sharir herd wasn't actually bad. Don't worry, they're bad. Hope you like the story so far!**

 **RR**


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